In light of these developments, I thought it might be a good time to share some key facts about vaccines and immunisation. If you are joining discussions about vaccination on social media, please feel free to use these ideas and/or the links.

NB: Please note that some people seem to be unable to discuss the subject of vaccination in a rational way, or are simply not interested in this topic. If you do encounter rude or dismissive responses it is best to either reply politely and/or disengage from that person and direct your efforts to communicating with people who have an interest in the topic.

It is also important to be respectful of whatever choices that others have made for themselves or their family regarding vaccination while asserting the basic human right for people to be able make a free and informed decision about medical care for themselves and their children.

Top Ten Facts About Vaccination

If you are discussing vaccination online, you may like to include these basic facts about vaccination.

1) Vaccination is a medical procedure that has real risks. (You can find out the side effects, as listed on the vaccine manufacturers’ datasheets by going to this link:

and typing in the name of the vaccine (or relevant disease, for example “measles”

2) In addition to either dead bacteria or viruses (or fragments thereof) or live viruses (in the case of the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine) vaccines contain a wide range of chemicals. These vary from vaccine to vaccine but can include formaldehyde, neomycin, phenoxyethanol and many others. (You can find the ingredients by looking up the relevant vaccine at this link: http://www.medsafe.govt.nz/profs/datasheet/dsform.asp

3) Some vaccines use “human diploid cells” derived from aborted human foetal tissue as a culture medium for viruses used in the vaccine. The rubella viruses in the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine are produced in this way. (You can prove this for yourself by looking on the manufacturer’s datasheet at this link: http://www.medsafe.govt.nz/profs/datasheet/dsform.asp

4) The mercury based preservative “thimerosal” has been phased out of the vaccines used for children in NZ however, Infanrix-hexa (on the NZ schedule for babies aged 6 weeks, three months and five months) was found to contain a very small amount of mercury in a study that was published in 2010. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20391108

5) Many of the vaccines included for NZ babies and children contain aluminium salts such as alumium hydroxide and/or aluminium phosphate as “adjuvants” to increase the reaction of the immune system to the bacterial or viral portions of the vaccine. This is a concern because a study on mice that were injected with an aluminium adjuvant showed that they developed brain damage. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2819810/

6) Genetically engineered ingredients are used in some vaccines. For example the “virus like particles” used in the Gardasil vaccine are produced through genetic engineering. (“Recombinant” is the term usually used in vaccine datasheets to indicate that a vaccine ingredient has been produced through genetic engineering.

7) In some cases, adverse reactions to vaccines are fatal. To find some examples of fatal adverse reactions to vaccines (as reported by family members of the deceased) you can visit http://www.nvic.org/Vaccine-Memorial/ and enter “death” into the search function.

8) In the USA which has a National Vaccine Injury Compensation programme, more than $US 2.9 billion have been paid out to vaccine victims since the programme began running in 1989. (Not everyone who applies to this agency is compensated.)

10) In NZ, victims of vaccine injury are supposed to be compensated by ACC. However, it can be difficult to find a doctor who will sign the paperwork stating that a vaccine caused the injury (even though doctors who vaccinate in NZ are not legally liable if a patient suffers an adverse reaction). Even in cases where ACC accepts that a vaccine has caused an adverse reaction the compensation that a child or adult receives may not be sufficient to pay for the cost of medical and supportive care needed and/or lost earnings etc.